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Editorial

First step toward justice

Former city schools data czar can help investigators unravel scandal

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The public has been waiting a long time for justice in the Columbus City Schools data scandal.
The no-contest plea to a felony charge on Thursday by former data czar Steve Tankovich is a major
turning point in the investigation.

Tankovich’s plea deal, and his promise to cooperate with investigations involving others, is
welcome because it could aid the effort to bring to account more of those who participated in the
deception. Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien deserves credit for advancing the case.

This criminal conviction underlines the seriousness of what key administrators did when they
manipulated attendance figures and test scores in order to fraudulently inflate the district’s
academic performance. Not only did this harm students and deceive taxpayers, it also has deeply
damaged the district’s credibility. This has added greatly to the difficulty of Superintendent Dan
Good’s efforts to repair the damage left behind by his predecessor, Gene Harris, on whose watch the
scheme was set in motion. Following Tankovich's plea, his attorney, Mark C. Collins, said that
Harris was in several meetings in which Tankovich's scheme was discussed.

"Was she aware of the issues and the conflicts? Absolutely, " Collins said.

With Tankovich’s agreement to work with investigators, they have a much better chance of
bringing his collaborators to account. When this is done, district residents will have closure and
justice, the two necessary ingredients before this matter can be laid to rest.

Credit also should go to Ohio Auditor Dave Yost, whose exhaustive investigation of the scheme
exposed its extent, its methods and many of the suspects. Meanwhile, the Ohio Department of
Education is seeking to revoke the educator licenses of those implicated in the scandal.

Through more than two years of outrageous and discouraging revelations there have been denials,
excuses and rationalizations. Several officials have resigned, retired or been fired, but none has
acknowledged responsibility. Tankovich’s plea is the first acknowledgement, but should not be the
last. O’Brien said that three lower-level district administrators are expected to agree to plea
deals within a month. This process should be pursued until all the guilty are exposed.

Tankovich's fourth-degree felony charge of attempted tampering with public records brings
clarity to the issue: Reporting on the attendance and academic performance of students isn’t a
game.

A no-contest plea means Tankovich doesn’t admit guilt, but he acknowledges that prosecutors have
enough evidence to convict him.

The charge could carry a sentence of up to 18 months and a fine of $5,000, but Franklin County
Common Pleas Judge Patrick E. Sheeran said that because Tankovich promised to cooperate and had no
criminal record, he likely will receive probation at his Oct. 16 sentencing. But the plea deal can
revoked if Tankovich fails to keep his word.

Tankovich has plenty to tell; principals and others have said that he devised methods to single
out kids with poor attendance and low test scores, falsely declaring them to have withdrawn from
school and then re-enrolling them later. This allowed schools to leave their results out of
official reports, falsely boosting test-passing and attendance rates.

Tankovich now can make amends for the harm he caused to the students and taxpayers of the school
district. He should cooperate fully with investigators.